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Prussian scheme

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The Prussian scheme is the rumor about a proposal in 1786 by President of the Continental Congress Nathaniel Gorham to establish a monarchy in the U.S. under the rule of Henry of Prussia, a prince of the House of Hohenzollern

There was no interest on Prince Henry's part, and no evidence of any action ever taken by anyone.

Background

Post-revolutionary monarchist tendencies

Prince Henry of Prussia was reportedly offered the hypothetical throne of the United States.

The protracted disturbances created by the shortcomings of the Articles of Confederation as the United States' constitution, which culminated in Shays' Rebellion, reportedly gave rise to a "class of men in the community who gave very serious apprehensions to the advocates for a Republican form of government".[1] During the May 1787 convening of the Philadelphia Convention to meet in secret to write a new constitution, rumors were heard that the convention might adopt the British system of a constitutional monarch. And if it did the rumor had it that there was a possibility of inviting the German Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany to be king of the United States. The convention issued a public denial that any such proposal existed and the rumor died out.[2] [3]

American attitudes toward Prussia

American public opinion at the time generally regarded Prussia warmly.[4] Prince Henry's older brother, Frederick the Great, harbored an "immense hatred" toward Great Britain for having abandoned Prussia near the end of the Seven Years' War.[4] During the American Revolution, Frederick had closed Prussian territory to passage by the army of the Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst, a British ally. This required military forces from the landlocked nation to make a circuitous journey to reach a seaport for deployment to North America, during which nearly half of Anhalt-Zerbst troops deserted.[5] Similar restrictions were placed on troops from other British allies attempting to transit to North America, including the Principality of Bayreuth, the Margraviate of Ansbach, and the Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel.[4]

Proposal

In the early 20th century a letter was discovered from Henry of Prussia to the Prussian-American general Baron Von Steuben (pictured) seemingly confirming the veracity of the "Prussian scheme" story.

Early allegations

According to Rufus King, at about the same time the rumors pertaining to Prince Frederick were circulating, Nathaniel Gorham secretly corresponded to Prince Henry of Prussia offering to create him as monarch of the United States.[6] The popular version of the story has Henry declining on account of the fact he did not believe the American public would be likely to submit to a king.[6] Later referred to as "the Prussian scheme", Rufus King's report of Gorham's offer was long considered apocryphal, though James Monroe later confided to Andrew Jackson that he was aware some members of what would become the Federalist Party had, nearly two decades before, "entertained principles unfriendly to our system of government".[1]

Possible confirmation

In the early 20th century an unsent letter was discovered in the Prussian archives from Henry, addressed to Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben who was, at the time the letter was written, living in retirement in New York City.[6] The letter, believed dated several months before the Philadelphia convention, refers to an offer the prince had received substantially similar to that detailed in the original story.[6] In it, Henry reports he is not interested in an American crown but recommends, instead, that an unnamed French candidate be considered for the position.[6]

Influence

Some have attributed the natural-born-citizen clause in the U.S. constitution as an attempt by the Philadelphia Convention to end the persistence of rumors of European royalty being invited to assume a hypothetical United States throne.[7]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Dunbar, Louise (1923). A study of "monarchical" tendencies in the United States, from 1776 to 1801. University of Illinois.
  2. ^ Kraul 1911, p. 49.
  3. ^ Vile, John (2005). The Constitutional Convention of 1787: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of America's Founding. ABC-CLIO. p. 490. ISBN 1851096698.
  4. ^ a b c Haworth, Paul (April 1904). "Frederick the Great and the American Revolution". The American Historical Review. 9 (3): 460–478. doi:10.1086/ahr/9.3.460. hdl:2027/loc.ark:/13960/t4dn4jz77. JSTOR 1833470.
  5. ^ Lowell, Edward (1884). The Hessians and the Other German Auxiliaries of Great Britain in the Revolutionary War. Harper & Bros. p. 52.
  6. ^ a b c d e Krauel, Richard (October 1911). "Prince Henry of Prussia and the Regency of the United States, 1786". The American Historical Review. 17 (1): 44–51. doi:10.1086/ahr/17.1.44. JSTOR 1832837.
  7. ^ Nelson, Michael (2012). Guide to the Presidency and the Executive Branch. CQ Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-1452234281.
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